Creating and editing local business listings can be tedious and there are so many listing sites. Keeping all those listings updated and error-free is another headache in itself. If you can’t stand managing your local listings but need to keep the rankings of your local business up, a solid strategy will make a world of difference. Here you’ll find tips for improving your local listing experience and results with SEO strategies to better target your local market.

On-Site Optimization for Local SEO

According to a survey conducted by Moz, optimizing for on-page SEO counts for 20% of what Google uses to determine which sites show up on their search results pages. A common misconception about SEO is that on-site optimization is one and done; that once you get it ready for search performance in general, it’ll work just as well for local search results. Starting out with an SEO-friendly website and trying new approaches to measure their effects is what it takes to give your site an edge in local searches.

Make Sure Your Website is Mobile-Friendly

More than 72% of smartphone use happens when people are away from home. Other research shows that most of your customers search within five miles of their current location. After the “Mobilegeddon” Google algorithm was released, mobile-friendly sites get special treatment in search results. Accelerated Mobile Pages are also likely to see better rankings over slower pages. It has become increasingly important over the past few years for local businesses to have mobile friendly websites and even apps to ride this trend.

Add Local Keyword Phrases to Tags

Locally-focused keywords are a must for local businesses. Content should help search crawlers get acquainted, not only with your business, but also where you do business. In meta tags, titles and descriptions, mentioning your city or area by name will go a long way. Be sure to include the location in your top keyword search terms.

Write Content with a Local Flair

Quality content can increase page views, likes and shares on social media, and boost organic traffic. In attempts to best localize SEO, many website owners miss valuable opportunities to capitalize on blogging. To make the most out of your website’s blog:

• Recognize the neighborhood you want to reach out to and think about the people who live and shop there. What are they searching for? How could your business help them?
• Use tools such as Google Trends, Google Keyword Planner, and Facebook Insights to analyze the demand of your product, location based information, and interest categories.
• Write about local events, attractions, festivals or dine-out restaurants. If something’s happening in your city, use it draw attention from people searching nearby.
• Conduct a short interview with a customer about their experience with your product or service. Write up a dialogue piece to show how your business can be of service.
• Create locally-focused Meta titles and descriptions for location-dependent content and don’t forget to do the same for image ‘alt’ attributes.

Use Schema Markup for Each Location

SEO is adopting uses for schema, structured data, and division tags. These technical aspects are slowly gaining momentum as more local businesses and SEO agencies find them effective. Schema markup conveys not just content, but how it fits with the other content on a site. For instance, with the help of schema markup, search engines don’t just see the name of your city on the website; they realize that’s where you are.

Include More Citations

The SEO industry has begun to shift focus from strictly on-page optimization to high-quality links. Creating citations can be time-consuming but it’s worth the recognition, especially in a local market. Focusing on a handful of citations relevant to your industry and brand, and then linking local websites is combination for excellent local search performance. In local SEO, linking to local websites where the domain authority or social following is slightly lower than average site is acceptable. To improve the quality of your citations, try:

• Tools like Mention or Google Alerts to track mentions of competitor’s listings (both new and old) and yours as well.
• Cross-checking the local listing with Moz’s Best Local Citations by Category to make sure that you are featured in the top listing sites.
• Running a competitive link report on Ahrefs, Open Site Explorer, or Majestic.
• Making the most out of your blogs to create local resources.
• Drumming up support from your local community by offering discounts or free products or services.

List Your Business in Google My Business

Alongside quality content and descriptions, a listing on Google My Business is the backbone of an effective SEO strategy for any local business. No matter your industry Google My Business gets your name out there and your business seen. Be sure to keep your listing current and consistent.

Encourage Your Customers to Leave Reviews

Few things are more inspiring to a local business owner than a five-star review from a happy customer. Not only does it boost confidence and pride in one’s enterprise to know your product or service has benefitted someone, positive customer reviews help immensely with getting the good word out. Then there is the occasional negative review. As strongly as a positive review can lead a business to growth, a negative review can have the exact opposite effect.

Positive and negative review signals help Google rank sites in their local algorithm, making up 8.4% of their local ranking criteria. Now, customers can leave reviews on Google without a Google+ account which only increases the impact of reviews on a business’ success. That also means you’ll get more positive responses from the customers you ask to leave you good feedback.